This amendment to the EU tax haven black list has been tabled in the EU parliament by the Socialists and Democrats Group (of which Labour is a member):
Peter Simon
on behalf of the S&D Group
Motion for a resolution
25 a(new)Motion for a resolution
Considering that according to the most recent OECD data on foreign direct investment, Luxemburg and the Netherlands together have more inward investment than the United States, and that the vast majority of these investments are in special purpose entities with no substantial economic activity, and that Ireland had more inward investment than either Germany or France; considering that according to its National Statistics Office foreign investments in Malta account to 1474% of the size of its economy; considering that of all corporate investments ending up in tax havens a total of 23% passed through the Netherlands according to research of the University of Amsterdam; considering that these data provide clear indication that EU member states are facilitating excessive profit shifting activities, which comes at the expense of other European member states; calls therefore on the European Commission to regard Luxemburg, the Netherlands, Ireland and Malta as EU tax havens;
I support the call. Whilst it would be exceptionally difficult to brand the UK a tax haven (although the likelihood that the Crown Dependencies and many Overseas Territories will be is high) these places all deserve that status in their own right and it is good to see some politicians that are willing to stand up and say so.
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Might want to include The City of London while they’re at it.
And Delaware…
The issue there is not the same
It is information exchange
Well, it’s a bit more than a mere gesture, and that’s encouraging, but what chance of its being approved (or passed or whatever the appropriate expression is) ?
Low
But gestures do count
Meanwhile across the Atlantic … USA tax evaders face large increase in fines!
Offshore tax evaders face penalties up to 10 times the current sentencing guidelines after the US Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a major policy shift at the 34th annual National Institute on Criminal Tax in Las Vegas on 7th December 2018. The Department of Justice has historically determined sentencing in US tax evasion cases based on the amount of unpaid tax. but this has changed and it will now determine offence levels based on the value of the undeclared offshore account.
Law firm Mitchell Williams commented:- “This is a major sentencing shift which can wildly escalate the offence level applicable to such defendants, and one which the defence bar must watch very closely.” Adding that another major issue with the policy shift is that allows for a two-level enhancement, where a defendant has also been convicted of an offence for filing a false or misleading Foreign Bank Account Report (FBAR).
https://international-adviser.com/us-tax-evaders-face-tenfold-penalty-hike/